Heating means for injectors



Dec 6, 1927.`

M. HARD HEATING MEANS FOR NJECTORS Filed May 27. 1926 2 Sheets; heet l 4 27, INVENTOR. /ALcoL/y. ,474mg I BY @Km A TTORNE Y.

Dec. 6, 1927. ,65,701

M. HARD f HEATING MEANS FOR INJECTORS Filed May 27. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 am m Zel

4/ COL/y MEE. I NV EN TOR.

A TTORNE Y.

Patented Dee. e, 1927.l

MALQQLM, HARDQor rnusnme; NEW YoRKyAssAIGNoR To ,TEE IsUrER'HEA'IPER COM- HEATINGMEANs :Foa I'lvarnoroas.-j` #if The present invention relatesvto exhaust i f position below the locomotive cab and is supsteam injectors ofthe ,type disclosed -in S. Patent 1,342,128, granted to James Metcalfe et al., on June 1, 1920. as adapted to be `operate'd, when applied toV alocomotive,v by a remote control system such as that. disclosed in U. S. Patent1,531,0011, granted A12o-M. Hard etl al., onl`\/Iarch 24', 1925. iln- Locomotive"installations,` injectors Yare exposed to .extreme weather conditions and Y during winter operationV the steam and Water conduits leading tothe injectorand the in-r jector itselfI aresubject to freezing. Steam must therefore be provided for periodically heating the injector during periodsV When it f is-.not Ainloperation and the present invention has for its principal object the provision of simple .and effective means for :performing this tunction. A further. object of Ythe invention is the provision of means whereby ,the strainer in the suction line delivering Water to the,l injector maybe cleared of 'any' obstruction caused by iforeign matter collect ing thereimrby A steam pressure 4admitted to the injec or. Further and more detailed yolojects ot the invention .will appear .asr the following detailed descriptiony of a preferred form of the invention proceeds'. In the accompanying drawings,r Vwhich .illustrate the invention,rFig. x1 .isial fragmentary viewn elevation of an injector infstallation embodying the present invention. Fig..f 2 is vhorixontal section, on alarger scale taken through the center line of the injector and Fig. '3 is avertical section taken on theline of Fig. 2.'A f

lReferring, now to F'g; 1, theinjectorindicated generallyat .1 is-mounted in the usual plied with Watervfrom the tenderthrough the suction line'2 vin'vvvhich is placed-a vstrainerf .Exhaust steam for operating the injector is` supplied. through the'pipe 4 leading from the engineexhaust passages and .the auxiliary and supplemental live steam necessary for the. injector'operation are admitted 'respectively.through 'pipes 5 and 6 leading. from .the main control .valve ,T located in the cab of th-e rlocomotive andV .connected by pipe 8 to the live steamturret 9;.. ,The injector Vdischargesthrough the ydelivery pipe 10 intothe locomotive boiler Way of check valve r11. i

the injector comprises 'Assho'v/n inv FigrQ, a'mam housing 12 in vvhich `are co-axially fijne vliv valve-"7,"there beingno valves located 'be- Cates ,With-a iss-1,701

mounted the exhaiststeainnozzle or 'cone 13, Water co ne`14,` a'secondary exhaust steam.

v(':onelpthe combining tubefl and the deliverynoazle 417', which ldelivers the feed Waterthro'ugh pipe Y10 tothe boiler." Ex#A eef haust steamis suppliedto nozzleslfand Y15 .through the exhaust steam .supply :pipe ,4c f

vvhicli opens into the steam chamber y18;"the' steam supply.- being controlledA bythe fluid' plied t'o the` injector,- when. exhaust steam Vr is -not available7H by v the pipeA 5.L through :thednleta 2 opening' v into the auxiliary steam4 passage .24,'Q-tlie. latter delivering tliegjsteam at reduced fpressure into the `steam chamber 'i 1 8 through the ports" 25. 4

supply of auxiliary and supplementalv esteaniisf controlled by. the inain control tween the latterfand the injector.` Water is' pipe f2 Athrough y the inlet .26' v vhichi'communr Water chamber 27,' in vwhich 'is trolledby `avalve 31`closing invv the direction of norm al Waterflow through the injector andurged to' itsseat by the sji'ringfjjsuit-y ably mounted above ythe valver and; held in the A injector i housing. The valve 31 is" provided ivitlia downwardly extended stemfZ' Wh'chf terminates ina piston frnountedin v.a cyhndereformedin the injector .housl'ng,l j this cylinder beingin communication y by Way f `oi' passage 34j with .the su'pplenie.ntalv` steam passage i, When` the `inj ect-or iis idle, valve 31. is seatedby spring 32 to shut oi the vvater supply j fto the Yirij I ector and when the injector is`-1n operation, valvel islifted from its seat and cylinder ,rom, lthe supplemental 's teamgpassage 21.and actingfon piston 33 tov raiseit andvvith tthe'valve, The' overflow passageV overflovv" valve fladapted Ito `lift `and allow .80 supplied iol-the injector from4 the "suction 'held in'Qpliposenbfistam' entering/the iol;L

. Qhembefgsurreudng Y the combining tube' 16 iscontrlled by an y the outlet 39.

fsirable waste.

It will be obvious from the foregoing that steam adinitte'dfv to* the r.interior of the injecs tor casing will have free passage through the several nozzles and passages thereof not only to the parts of the injector` itself, but will also be free to flow up through the steam pipes 5 and 6 as far as the main control valve and also through the delivery pipe lO to the check valve 11. Moreover, if suicient pressure be exerted by steam-within the injector, the water valve 31 vwill be lifted against the water pressure andthe pressure of spring 32, and steam will be blown b ack through the suction line for the purpose of clearing any obstruction in the strainer28 or the main strainer 3. However,as willbe obvious from Figi 3, steam admitted tothe injector for the above purposes will tend., before any .appreciable pressure is built up inthe injector, to open the overfiow valve 37 and escape through the overflow outlet of the injector.` j

Y I n previous forms of apparatus designed to permit heating of vthe injector by steam, the overflow valve Ahas been providedgwith a mechanical connection leading to the cabjof the locomotive, whereby the operator could manually keep the valve closed and warm .the injector b y admitting steam kthereto through lone ofthe main steam supply7 pipes leading to the injector. This method of heating the injector isi-however, unsatisfactoryas ingmany cases, due to the location of the injector with reference to the locomotive cab, ,a complicated arrangement of levers,

rods and universal joints 'is required between theoveriow valve and 4theoperating handle inthe cab. Itis furthermore objectionable ito heat the injectorr'by means of live 'steam admitted through one `of the main `supply conduits, asin lmany cases more steam vthan .is necessary is used with a consequent lundev- 5111 th ipresent iinvention, the apparatus just referred to is Areplaced-by 'steam-actu V,ated mechanism which notv only supplies heating steam to the injector but which also automatically holds the overflow -valve :in

closed ,position as long ,as heating steam is being supplied, andautomaticallyreleases it i when-the heating steam is shut off;

Ato form-a verticalfcha'mber 40 commimicat` lIn'thepreferred embodiment of the'inven- ,t-ionxshowmthedelivery chamber of thei'n- ,ingtherewith 'The chamber 40isjprovided fwith an opening atv the'topinto which is'se- Acured the annulariguide member41-in which is mounted ,plunger 42, 'the `latter j passing j l, through? the; packing gland 43 and; termi nat` ing in an enlarged end 44e having an vopening '65 rtherethroughv'rhich .receives one. end `of lthe,

lever 45 pivotally mounted on'the'injector `these circumstances theheating steamI-pass :lngthefplston '53'.W1ll be condensediby the Water-un the body ofthe injectorandkgrarl housing `4at 46, and extending-'beyond the pivot to engage the upper end' of the overiow valve stem 47 which projects through the top of the injector housing.V The Cha-IL1- Y vber 40 is providedwith a threaded opening at the bottom thereof in which is secured, in

- alignment with the member 4l, a member 48 forming a cylinder 49v open at its upper end and connected at its'lower end by passage 50 with the steam pipe 51 leading from the tur ret 9' and 'controlledby' the manually-operprovided at thev bottom of passage 50,' the valve being seated by fluid pressure 'in pas-` sage 50 and vbeing raised from its seatv by spring 56 in the absence Vof pressure in the passage. in the injector housing around the valve stem `47 normally holds the end of lever 45 A spring 57 mounted in a recess Y out of contactwith the upper end of stem 47.

- '1 he ,operation of the dev-ice isV as follows. .If 1t `1s desired to warm the injector during idle periods or thaw it in case it has become frozen, valve k52 is `opened .and livevv steam admitted .to cylinder 49, forcing piston 53 up-v wards and with it plunger 42, which, act-ing through V lever 45 and valve stem 47, holds the koverlow valve of the injector in c losed ositi'on. Y Y Y' i' VVith the .overow valve thus held closed, steam from the cylinder 49 leaks inV appreciable quantity past lthe piston 53 int-'o' Vthe chamber 40 which, as previously noted, is lin rcommunica-tion with the delivery chamber ofthe injector. From thispoint, if fthe finjector is empty, steam is free v-to ',travel through lthe delivery pipe `10 vas lfar as the boiler check valve and ajlsoythrough the idelivery and combining nozzles 'into the mai n body of Athe injector, from which it 'has `tree l access to both'the auxiliary and supplemental steam pipes as far as themain'con-trol Qva'lveftheY latter being located within the Amulate inthe injector :through leakagespast the piston 53, a suitlcient pressurelmay-be built up toliftthe,watervalve31 and-allow 4 'steamto'enter andheatvthe water-passages -jector surrounding the nozzle V17 lis extended Y.

and Isuction pipe 2.

`Undernormal conditions,l` however. thefin .jector is fille'rlavith water `during idle-p c-A riods when heating is necessary, va-nfd -under ually warmthe ent-ire apparatus; 'I'f-1lei't :turned on, the continued condensationof the r` heating steam. -W`ill vcause the injector tto l jector.

Voverfl1 and-the resultant excess otwarm Water-Will lift the Water valve and pass into the suction line. Furthermore, as vthe Water in the injector approachesl the boiling flow temperatures, Without Vthere being'an excessive loss of live steam, as might be the case if it Were necessary to open one of the mainl steam supply pipes for heating purposes. f -V j In case the strainers in the suction line become clogged and it is desired to clear the obstruction, the heater vvalvejis first opened forthe purpose of closing the overflow valve as previously described, after which the main control valve may 'be moved to admit high pressure supplemental steam tojthe in.- With' the overiioW valve held closed, ahigh steam pressure can be built up Within the injector forcingl steam baclr through the suction line'to clear the latter. `While in the form'of the injector shown thevvater valve is A automatically liftedvby lthe pressure of tlie supplemental steam onzthe operating piston 34, it will be readily apparent that the same act-ion will take place even though the Wa ter valve is actuated in a differentnianner,

i as the supplemental steam Within the injecposition,

torwill create sufficient pressure below the valve 31 toraise it and allow the steam to blow back throughthe Water. passages and suction pipe. Y, L`

As a precautionary measure the piston isA formed with a valve 'face'Ll on its vrlower side which, when the'. piston is in'fits lower co-operates With a complementary valve seat *sage 50. ,The pistoninits lower position thus forms a check valve preventing Water under high pressure passing from the delivery nozzle of the injector into the conduit 51 when theinjector vis operating and precluding the possibility of leakage in case the vvalve 52 or any of the connections in the supply conduit are defective. l

It WillY be apparentthat the piston 53 could be made a comparativelytight lit A'in the cylinder and the heating steam supplied I' to the injector through a port in the wallof the passage 50 or in the cylinder properbe-` low the piston, but the form of construction;

shown is to be preferred as it eliminates the undesirable packing of the piston Which would otherwise be necessary and, moreover, if such a port Were placedin the passage 50 or some equivalent branch passage, the check valve eect of piston in its low formed around the end othepas er position would be lost and the supplyconduit 51 would be subjected to the high 4Water. l pressure existing in thedeliverychamber at Y all -timeswhen the injector-'Was inl operation.

Many variations and changes in 'the form and arrangement' of the Vajgiparatus shown in `the preferred embodiment illustrated Will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art,

but it is to lbe understood that .the :embodi- Within the scope overflow valve,'of a'second valve controlledf conduit connecting said ,injector With 5a source ofsteam, and iiuid pressure actuated Vineansresponsive to pressure in said conduit and operating to close saidvoverflovvvalve upon the admission of steam'to saidlast'r.

named conduit. y j n Y 2. In apparatus of the class described, the combination With an injector having a Valve controlled live steam supply conduit and an susl overflow valve, of a second valve controlledf' conduit 'connecting' said. 'injectorfwith a source of steam, and fluid pressure actuated meansoperatively vconnected to said overtlowvalve interposed in saidconduiasaid means being yoperated to'clos'e said overow 100 valve `by v steam passing through said last named conduit, whereby saidovertlow valve is subjectedl to a closing. pressurey before steam is admitted to the injector.

3. In apparatus of the class described,...the-'1` i combination With: an injector`= having .an overflow valve,` of a valve controlled` 'conduit connectingY said injector Withk al sourcef, of

steam, fluid pressure actuated vmeanstor closing said `overflow valveextending:'Tint/.ifV said conduit and forming a'restriction therein, whereby theiiow otsteamadmittedfto. the injector through said conduitfis limited to a predetermined rate 4. In apparatus ofthe class Adescribed-,itlie.j,` i* j combination'with anlinjector having an overflow valve, of a valvecontrolled conduit con .necting saidinjectorjwith a source of'steam,

a cylinder in communication with said coni duit and a piston in said cylinder, said y'pis-` ton being voperatively connected 'With said overiiovv valve to close the latter Whenlsteam is admitted to said conduit and cylinder.

5. In apparatuso the class described, the

combination With aninjector having an overflow valve, of .a Vconduit leading from a source of steam and terminating in a cylinj der opening into saidinjectoiga valve conl piston loosely mounted in said cylinder, and mechanism operatively connectingsaid pistrolling the steam .supply to said conduit,"a- Y' .i ff 1.,

Y ton with said overiiow valve to close the lat- W28'. In an injector', the combination ter when 'steam is admitted to 'thef eyli nden, whereby opening said :control valve operates to 'elosev saidrioveriow .valve and supplies heating-f steam `to the injeotorgby .leakage i 6FT In apparat-us ofthe lclass described ,I the cor'nbination"with` an'injectorA compri-sing a easingI l'laving'fay kportedfoverlow passage,- a delivery-:nozzle and Ya'fchamloen" in communication iwi-th@ the nozzle, foffxasvalve conti-,clling sai d overlow' passage, a cylinder in, communicationfwith said chamber;V ai piston :operativelyi connected with saidrfvalvel and loosely mounted in said cylinderfand/ means; ior admitting live steam to said cylindcraf:y

fl i7 VIn an inject-or, "the `conlilzination, with a cheeki vaived delivery eline Izconnectedfl ;to a vessel under# high pressure, `a=plurality ot' pipes supplyingfgoperaftingxsteanr to:sa`idinjector, and' means adapted to `@lose saidipipes, Qfa 'Water supply pipeyia valver'controi' ing sa last named'pipe and opening away-` from vtlie'f'in'j ector," lan 'overflow val ve; a .verl ue eontollediiconduit: for supplying heating steam Y t0 said injector, and iuid pressureactuated ineansiopera'ted,byitheadmissioui of steam to said conduitf. tov fclose l"said y overflow valve,

' wherebywad-mission of heat-ing steam to ;said

nljeetor creates ai pressure with a delivryicheck'i valved lineconfnected :to a 'vessel' Vunder pressure", a xplu-ralit-y, rot pipes 'supplying flow .'pressure, operating steaznzie to said' injector,v andnameans adapted to `close said pipesg'of afzwaterfsupply pipe, a valve controlling Isaid last namedi pipe andy opening away from sai'di injector,anxoverlow valve,` a'ifvalvez.controlledV conduit for sup- Iplying heating steam tov. Ythe injector, xmeans Operatedby vthe admission of,V steam tosaid conduitf to l close said overflow: valve,swhere Y y byfthe admission olf/heating steamtoisaidsaid watervalve, and meansrto. admitlhifgh injectorcreates a pressure therein to open pressure"foperating steamy to said, injector "when said'v'overiiowvalvef is closed, lwhereby said -Water supply pipe! mayi be. cleared hy` high-pressurealive steam. y e 49. In#aninjectory-the:combination with a :oncluit=deliver1ng yarestrietedf supply. ot

sure live' steamatov the ,injeetorfjoi' van. over; .How valve, elosed byf .theadmissmn of steam to Vsaid Airstvnamed conduit, ,a Water'sup plypipe, and al watervalve thereinopened by the admission Offsteain to '.saidlastnamed conduiu, whereby admission of steam'tofhoth of said conduits causes ysteam to flow from theinjector through said water valvegand said water supply pipe.

v10. In aninject-or, theicombinationfwith .i

a plurality olrsteam Supply,,conduitspositively closedragainst, pressure within,theinA- j ector, 'of avvater supply inlet,v aV ,Valve controlling-said inlet and, opening away vfrein thefinjector, an Overiiowoutlet, a valve controlling Asaid outlet, jiiuidY pressurey actuated means for closing said last named valve,,and a valvev controlled steam suppylyjcloiiduit leading to said means and also in communication with said injectorlthroughta restricted openino'.; 2 y

11. `-In an injector, the combination with a plurality of steam supply conduitsfpositive ly closed against` pressure 'withinthe injector, of-a Vwater .supply t inlet, a valve Controlling'said yinlet and opening away .fromllthe injector, an overflow outlet, avalvecontroh ling' sald outlet, i luidl pressure, actuated means for closing saidlast ynamed valve, a j

' valve controlledsteam supply conduit leading-tosaid means and ,also 1n communication with. said. inj eetor through Aa restricted open- 1ng,flu1d pressure actuateduneans for openingv saidwatervalve, anda valve controlledmv conduit for: :supplying` high .pressure 1 operatingz steam to, the injector, said. conduit heing 4`in `commun-ication with said .last ,named meanszr, i t

l2. In an injector, the with ai; j

plurality` o f steam supplyY conduits lpositively elosedfagamst pressure withinv the injector,

.ofra twater supplyinletl, aLvalve-fcontrolling Is ald inlet andlfjopening away/from theL injector, an overflow outlet, a valve 'controlsV ling,` said -outle t fluid jpressur'e actuated meansfor closing said lastnamed valve, and

va valve controlled vconduit v for supplying ae- ;.tuating steam tofsaid means. I

MALcoLM "Huangy 

